New to the forum.

[Me&My53]

I first would like to introduce myself,
My name is Joe and I live in Alabama.
I have a 1953 chevrolet 5 window short bed pickup.
I bought the truck in Colorado and the guy I bought the truck from was the grandson of the original owner. The grandson has put a 1967 327 corvette engine and Saginaw 4 speed transmission. It has a 10 bolt rear end out of a 1969 Impala, But it resides on it's original frame with drum brakes in all 4 corners.
But it has been converted to 5 lug. ( not sure what was used to do the conversion on the front) possibly the front hubs from the Impala.
The ONLY rust the truck has is where the firewall meets the floor board on the drivers side just under the pedals and on both kick panels.
Probably the worst spot is around the parking brake hole in the corner of the floor.

This is what I would like to do to the truck. And I have been trying to do alot of research on how to do this.
I would like to do a S10 frame swap with power steering and power brakes. A/C
And swap the points distributor to HEI it has already been converted to 12 Volt system but it still has points. but none of the gauges work.
So I have a lot of wire issues to work out.
My main questions are:

1. Can a 1994 up S10 frame work? If so would it be the same as a first gen S10 i.e. Standard cab, 2wd, Long Wheel Base.?
I am finding it near impossible to locate a first gen S10 2wd LWB. even junk yards and scrap yards want $1000 for JUST A FRAME. not even a rear end.
I can find plenty of the extended cab 1st gen's and if the 1994 up frame won't work my back up plan is to use an extended cab and just shorten the frame at the joint.
2. I want to keep the engine and transmission combo that is in the truck now.
It has the double hump manifolds that exit in the center and I would love to keep these on the engine if possible. Is this going to be an issue?
From what I have read the headers or manifolds must be a rear exit.
3. Can the factory running board mounts be removed from the original frame and used on a S10 frame?
Any help with this before I tackle this project is greatly appreciated.
How do I upload pictures? I cant find the URL on this MAC

[Kodiaks53]

Welcome to the forum Joe. There a lot of very good info here on the S-10 swaps. I would suggest looking through some of the build threads that are using the S-10 frame, there are several. Mine is one, just click the link under my avtar. I highly suggest looking at the sticky on the "S-10 swap How to" at the top pf the page it is by Skymangs one of the best with a ton of info there.

What part of Alabama? I live in NE Ga just east of Gainesville.

Ron

[ghettoluxury]

The 94 up S10 long bed frame will work fine. The frames are almost exactly the same from 82-02. Most guys prefer the 82-93 because they can use more of the parts from the truck, like the steering column. If you can find extended cab trucks cheep then pick 1 up and shorten it at the joint.

I am not sure if the Ram Horn manifolds will work.I am using an LS engine and my manifolds exit at the rear.

The only running board bracket that will possibly line up is the rear one. You will be better off just leaving them on the frame and making new ones.

[Katrina/10]

Have you considered using the stock frame?

[oldman3]

This thread is at the top of this forum, it is a great source http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=632686 hope this helps...Jim

[OrrieG]

Welcome to the forum. What is the reason for changing to S-10? Someone has already done all the hard work on converting to 5 lug, v8 swap, etc. What will you be using the truck for? Weekend cruiser, daily driver, long distance freeway flyer? A lot of improvements have been made in stock suspension options since the original conversion was done. If it is front suspension ride quality look at a MII or other aftermarket solution that does not require all the fabrication of the S-10. They are pretty well thought out and could be done in a relatively short time. Even with the S-10 you will still have a leaf spring rear end. Sounds like you have a driveable truck, and you want to keep it that way, not do a multi-year project. All the patch panels to fix the rust are available and can be fixed without removing the cab. Hei swap is easy, you will need a new wiring harness that will come set up for it.

[Me&My53]

My main objective for doing a S10 Swap is safety.
Secondly is ride quality and trying to keep in mind the fact that suspension and brake parts are a lot easier to obtain without having to order replacement parts online. I can just go to a local parts store and get the parts for a S10.
I have also looked into doing just a K member swap like the Mustang II
At this point I really don't know what direction I will be going in.
But I am doing research on all of the options and weighing the pro's and con's of all of them.
Even a MII K member is a lot of work and the front sheet metal and engine will all have to be pulled.
thanks for the help!
Joe

And I also wanted to mention that this will be a daily driver and me and my wife will both drive.

[Russell Ashley]

Take a look at a Scott's bolt in front suspension for an AD. You don't have to pull the engine or even the front sheet metal. Seems to be the easiest way although maybe not the cheapest.